It’s not all about the money!
At times, career decisions ARE all about the income, but we need to think carefully about making this a prime consideration.
When I returned to work after years as a stay-at-home mum, I was hungry to prove myself. I wanted to earn well, get ahead, and show I could keep up. Recruitment seemed perfect - I’d been there before.
I threw myself into long hours, saying yes to everything, and quickly discovered a truth: the harder I pushed, the more money I made. For a while, it was exhilarating. Bigger bonuses, bigger recognition. Classic golden handcuffs.
But after two and a half years, I hit a wall. A chest infection lingered for months. My doctor didn’t mince words: “You need to get out of there.” That was my wake-up call, and I found an employer whose values were aligned - quality ahead of productivity.
That was then. These days, the pressure is greater. We’ve become intensely aspirational, and it’s costing us our health, our families, and even the planet. The faster we live, the more we consume.
But what if slowing down and living more simply opened doors we hadn’t imagined?
Here’s a provocative question:
If you earned just two-thirds of your current income, would you choose it - and why?
Compromising well-being for workload is one of today’s biggest challenges. Career coaches spend much of their time helping people weigh up:
Do I choose work that uplifts me, or work that pays well?
Do I stick with what I know, or explore what could be more meaningful?
When work feels meaningless or misaligned with our values, stress builds. Over time, it shows up in our bodies, our moods, and our relationships. Yet, few pause to ask the key question: Why am I doing this work?
Financial security matters, but genuine success comes from work we enjoy and feel connected to. The belief that we must earn more to live well is a social construct, one that can trap us in unsustainable patterns.
If a doorway to more meaningful work appears, it’s worth exploring. Ideally, our careers should allow time to rest, connect, and grow. A useful guide is Te Whare Tapa Whā: nurturing the physical, spiritual, emotional, and social pillars. Neglect one, and the whole house, your well-being becomes unsteady.
Pause. Reflect. Ask yourself:
What trade-offs could I make for a life that feels fuller, more satisfying - not just wealthier?
Talk about your situation with a career coach.
Or take a career questionnaire to clarify what matters/identify your ‘why’
Kaye Avery
Phone: 0064 21474765